Strong Enough
by maxbyfive
Summary: One shot, BobHelen. Helen wakes up one night and thinks about the events in the movie.


Disclaimer: I do not own The Incredibles. I have nothing to do with Pixar.This story ismainly Helen thinking about the events in the movie with some fluff at the end. I was listening to the song that's mentioned before the story for hours on end last week and thought that it was perfect for Bob and Helen. If I can I want to make a music video of it.

Anyway, I hope you like it.

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**_Strong Enough_**

_When I've shown you that I just don't care  
When I'm throwing punches in the air  
When I'm broken down and I can't stand  
Would you be man enough to be my man?  
Lie to me  
I promise I'll believe  
Lie to me  
But please, don't leave_  
- Strong Enough, Sheryl Crow

_"Mr. Parr no longer works for Insuricare." _

"What do you mean? He's on a business trip...a company retreat..."

"My records say his employment was terminated almost two months ago..."

I woke up, gasping for breath in the way that one always does when they wake up from a bad dream. It had been almost six months since the incident at Nomanisan, and I was still having nightmares about it and the events leading up to it. They were less frequent then they had been during the first month or so, but they were still frightening. I could still remember how I felt when I had heard that. I could barely breathe. Hearing those words had brought to life something that had been in the back of my mind that I had refused to acknowledge. I had finally had to face the truth: that my husband had been lying to me for the past two months.

Things are much better now. Supers are allowed to do what they were meant to do again - helping people. Of course there weren't many left anymore...but things were feeling good again. Like the glory days, only better. And in some cases, more dangerous.

It unnerves me that my children are out there now, helping us fight crime and battle villains. It isn't that they aren't good at it, they're much better than I would have thought, being that they haven't had much experience. But I hate seeing them getting shot at or attacked by our enemies. I'm terrified that someone will try to hurt them or take them for us. I don't remember ever in my life being as terrified as I was when I saw Syndrome in our house, holding my baby. Part of me is scared that he'll come back and try to steal another one of our children, and if not him, someone else. I know it's a completely irrational fear - after all, I knew what had happened to him. But I could never forgive myself if that happened. I couldn't live with myself anymore.

After waking up that night, I sat up and looked at the empty space in the bed beside me. Bob was out fighting crime again, he had gotten a call a while ago about a hostage situation in a store. I had asked him if he wanted our help, but he said to stay home and not worry, it shouldn't take too long and he didn't want the kids to be out on a school night. He doesn't go out and do this every night, just every once in a while, when they don't need all four of us or even just the two of us, they just need someone to help with the situation who would have an advantage over the criminal. It doesn't usually bother me.

But that night it was different. That night, I wanted him with me. The dream had left me scared and wanting someone to be in bed with me, to kind of...protect me, in a way. To make me feel safe. But he wasn't there.

I brought my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms around them, hugging them through the blankets, trying to calm myself down. Despite the blankets and the heat in the room, I still felt cold and shaken. With a sigh, I rested my head on my knees.

"Honey?"

I looked up and turned around, surprised to see Bob there. He looked fine, a little worn out, a little ragged, but he was safe and didn't appear to be hurt. I smiled a little in relief to see him. "Hey. How did it go?"

"It was hard, but the police and I were able to talk the guy down without anyone getting hurt." He went into or bathroom and changed into his pajamas, then came back in and knelt down on the bed beside me, looking at me closely, a concerned expression on his face, then placed his hand on my face and wiped away some tears. "Helen? What's wrong?"

I sat up straighter and wiped my eyes. I hadn't even realized I had been crying.

"Are you upset that I was out tonight without you and the kids? I just didn't think it would be necessary, they said that there weren't even very many people in the store..."

"It's not that," I said softly.

"Then what's wrong?"

I took a deep breath. "I just...I dreamed about it again." I didn't have to elaborate. He knew what I was talking about.

"Oh..." Bob looked concerned and guilty, maybe because he hadn't been here when I had woken up. He put an arm around my shoulder and held me for a while. After that, he placed one hand on my shoulder and cupped my cheek, which was still stained with tears, with the other. "I'm sorry that I wasn't here for you."

"I just...I kept thinking about how it felt to think you might be leaving me, or that you might be in danger. I was so afraid."

He tilted my face upward so I was looking into his eyes. "You know that I love you, and I would never leave you. I would never even consider it."

I guess I didn't look much better, because he continued. "I've been having dreams, too. About when Syndrome sent the missiles on you, Violet, and Dash, and hearding they had a confirmed hit...I was so scared that you all were really gone, and that I had never properly expressed how grateful I was to have you."

He kissed me gently on the cheek, then on the mouth.

"It's still scary to think about what happened, but it's over now. We have each other, we have our kids. Nothing is ever going to change that."

I finally smiled, then reached up, wrapping my arms around his neck and kissing him. I rested my head on his shoulder.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

We soon fell asleep, wrapped in each other's arms.


End file.
